M. Kulasegaran: 6 months’ wait to rehire foreigners sent home by employers

Human Resources Minister M. Kulasegaran noted that bosses looking to avoid paying the levy to extend skilled foreign workers will need to wait for three to six months before they can rehire foreign workers they send home, Malay Mail reported.

Speaking to reporters at the Job Fair at Urban Transformation Centre (UTC) 5.0, he said: “There will be a ‘cooling period’ and employers need to wait for three to six months if they wanted to hire the same workers.

“Some employers wanted their workers to extend their stay beyond 10 years. They came to us and ask for the extension and we can approve that, but they need to pay the RM10,000 levy, that’s the procedure.

“But, now they want to send back the workers. We have no problem in that they can send back and apply again by paying RM1,800, but they have to wait.”

Kulasegaran also noted, for foreign workers, those who apply again to work in Malaysia are entitled to work for another 10 years, and not the three years allowable in the extension.

He added that fresh applications will take about a month to process, saying: “This is because they have to go through a few mechanism such as obtaining medical report and police clearance.”

Earlier, Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng pointed out that employers need to pay the entire amount of levy if they want their workers to extend their stay. On the reason behind the move, Kulasegaran said it was to encourage employers to hire local workers instead of foreign workers.